US newspaper publisher Gannett has announced it is planning to switch all of its 80 newspapers, with the exception of USA Today, to a paid-for online model by the end of this year, bringing in an estimated to $100m a year.

According to Forbes, Gannett told investors at an event yesterday that a metered system, similar to that used by the New York Times, would come into force, with a quota of between five and 15 free articles per month.

USA Today is the only title that will not switch. Forbes notes:

USA Today is in the midst of overhauling its website to create a user experience more similar to that of an iPad app.

But any attempt to charge for its articles would likely encounter certain obvious issues. While its main national rivals, the Times and The Wall Street Journal, rely on their depth and quality to persuade readers to pay up, USA Today trades on its ubiquity. More than half of its 1.7 million circulation comes from copies distributed to readers free (or quasi-free) through hotels, airports and other hubs.

One of the speakers was Frederic Filloux, general manager of ePresse Consortium, the “digital kiosk” or newsstand from ePresse which launched in July this year after just six months of development by a two-man team (the catalogue section of the iPhone app is shown in the screenshot on the left).

Filloux gave an interesting insight into the model and the online challenges of the industry in which it performs.

He said the kiosk has a “news DNA”, leaving the leisure magazine market to other outlets.

“It is highly selective. It had just eight publishers at start, and might have grown to 12 in January. It is capturing an 85 per cent reach, the market is quite concentrated.”

I spoke to him more about the platform after the session, when he also discussed how ePresse would be working with Google’s One Pass system

During the session the speakers also called on editors to experiment with numerous revenue streams, and find their unique market.

Filloux told the conference “the company that will survive will be the one able to have not two but 15 different revenue streams and be able to test, experiment and find out what will be most valuable … It will have to test a lot and try many formulas.”

Fellow speaker Madhav Chinnappa, head of strategic partnerships for Google News, added that “the solution is going to be unique and individual”.

In my personal opinion the most successful paywall has probably been the Financial Times, but they have a unique set of circumstances. It took them years to develop their paywall, trying different things. They spent a lot of effort around customer data. They come from unique position. I don’t know any human who pays for a subscription to the FT, it’s companies, so that’s going to be different from most newspapers in the audience.

The Independent profiles Racing Post and outlines its new online payment system launched in July: 3,000 subscribers signed up in the first week, with membership now approaching ‘five figures’.

“In July, Racing Post launched an enhanced online offering for members willing to pay £7.50 a month (equivalent to 25p a day) (…) Some are prepared to pay more. Other packages include a premium tipping service for £9.50 a month, a package that offers live online racing from the satellite subscription channel Racing UK (£7.50) or an all buzzers and bells ‘Ultimate Membership’ for £199.95 a year. More than a quarter of subscribers have chosen this ultimate package.”